Meet Our Past Community Grant Awardees
FY22 - Cycle 2 Winners
An Open Book Foundation
An Open Book Foundation provides literacy support through collaboration with authors and illustrators to host writing workshops, science demonstrations and art projects to students in Title 1 schools across all 8 Wards. Each year, AOB hosts over 150 events and donates more than 12,000 books to students and libraries.
After-School All Stars, Washington DC (ASAS DC)
After-School All-Stars provides programs and transformative opportunities that help students develop the skills, knowledge, and habits needed to succeed in life, school, and their future career. We deliver comprehensive, community-oriented programs to under-resourced students in five program areas: health and fitness, academic readiness, STEM, career exploration and visual & performing arts.
Children's Legacy Theatre
Children’s Legacy Theatre (CLT) creates extraordinary theater experiences that educate, challenge, and inspire teens to dream and connect to different cultures and ideas. Through our presentation of classical and historical plays, youth question and explore the complex world, composing and directing their own plays, thus, producing positive contributing members to society.
Empowerment Enterprise 2
Empowerment Enterprise 2 (EE2) seeks to empower individuals and change communities. We create sustainable change by providing community enrichment through programing that is focused on youth development, HIV/AIDS prevention, Life Skill development and community development. EE2 was founded in 2008 and is located at 5201 Ames St NE, Washington, DC 20019. EE2 is a 501c3 tax exempt organization that sets out to impact communities through equipping individuals with viable skills.
Gearin' Up Bicycles
Gearin’ Up Bicycles’ purpose is to create career development opportunities and teach essential workplace skills to youth from under-served communities, while encouraging cycling as a practical, healthy means of transportation. Gearin’ Up provides access to quality, affordable, used bicycles for those in need and hosts various community outreach programs throughout the year. Our community-focused organization focuses on four pillars to achieve our mission: job training, refurbished bicycles, experiential education and community engagement.
Horton's Kids
Horton’s Kids empowers children growing up in DC’s most under-resourced communities so that they graduate from high school ready for success in college, career, and life. We serve 600 children and their families living in Wellington Park & Stanton Oaks – neighborhoods that have been profoundly impacted by decades of disinvestment and barriers to opportunity.
Horizons Greater Washington
We advance educational equity by building long-term partnerships with students, families, communities, and schools to create experiences outside of school that inspire the joy of learning.
Hillwood Estate, Museum, and Gardens
Welcome to the home of Marjorie Merriweather Post, where every visitor is greeted with an experience inspired by the life of its founder and her passion for excellence, gracious hospitality, art, history, and gardens.
Whether you are a first-time visitor or long-time member, there is always something new to discover at Hillwood. Most guests spend close to three hours enjoying all that Hillwood has to offer.
Latin American Youth Center
Our mission is to empower a diverse population of youth to achieve a successful transition to adulthood through multi-cultural, comprehensive, and innovative programs that address youths’ social, academic, and career needs.
The MusicianShip
The MusicianShip’s mission is to change lives by facilitating music lessons, experiences, and opportunities to benefit those who need us most. At our core, we are a youth development organization that offers a wide range of music education programs, geared towards enriching the lives of students, their families, and the communities in which they live. Our After-school, Summer, Master Class, and Ensemble Programs, such as the Washington Youth Choir, serve youth ranging from 5 years old all the way through the age of 24. And while we are based in Washington, DC, we reach students as far as South Africa, Paris, and Sint Maarten.
The Nicholson Project
The Nicholson Project is an artist residency program coupled with a neighborhood garden that works to support artists and serve as a creative and innovative cultural hub. We aim to become a community anchor that celebrates the community’s authentic identity while infusing new vibrancy into Southeast DC.
NOMIS Youth Network
NOMIS Youth Network provides physical health and sports programming services, health and wellness guidance, and counseling and mentoring to at-risk youth in D.C. Operating since 2004, NOMIS moved into the new Boxing Community Center in Ward 7, PSA 507, in January 2015. Those who attend the NOMIS programs come from all over D.C., but predominantly from Wards 5, 6, 7, and 8, and Capitol Hill.
NOMIS Youth Network programs include an After-School Boxing Academy, Elite Boxing Team, and two summer camps. Our students are welcome to visit the facility anytime to workout, hangout, and socialize with their peers.
Open Goal Project
To create opportunities for young players from low-income families and underserved communities to access high-level soccer and grow with the game, on and off the field, to provide resources that empower those players and families to navigate the costs and overcome hidden barriers associated with playing, and to use soccer as a vehicle for cultural enrichment, higher educational opportunities, and greater life experiences.
We’re here to make U.S. youth soccer more equitable and more diverse. we’re here to give black and brown kids a real opportunity to reach the highest levels of the game.
Peace Thru Culture, Inc.
Our mission is to build tolerance, respect, and understanding among humans through interactive cultural education, STEM, civics, and global exposure.
Smart Activities for Fitness and Education (S.A.F.E.)
Smart Activities for Fitness and Education (S.A.F.E.) is a non-profit 501 (c) 3 community youth sports development organization that uses tennis programs to provide opportunities for youth in the District of Columbia to build their character and self-esteem and improve their academic performance. Through comprehensive tennis and educational programs and cultural enrichment activities, S.A.F.E. encourages youth to make better choices and teaches youth to become confident, responsible, and valuable members of their community.
Learn more about Smart Activities for Fitness and Education (S.A.F.E).
Step Afrika! USA Incorporated
Step Afrika! blends percussive dance styles practiced by historically African American fraternities and sororities; traditional African dances; and an array of contemporary dance and art forms into a cohesive, compelling artistic experience. Performances are much more than dance shows; they integrate songs, storytelling, humor and audience participation. The blend of technique, agility, and pure energy makes each performance unique and leaves the audience with their hearts pounding.
Shaw Main Streets, Inc.
Shaw Main Streets is an award-winning commercial revitalization and historic preservation nonprofit organization that has facilitated the community-driven redevelopment of Washington, DC’s Shaw neighborhood since 2003.
The Theatre Lab School of the Dramatic Arts
The Theatre Lab’s uniquely nurturing, inclusive environment is felt through small classes that stress personal and artistic growth. We set high expectations for students at all skill levels and we believe that all students have limitless potential. Theatre Lab classes boost success on stage and off by teaching skills applicable to a career in theatre or elsewhere. Students and parents tell us that Theatre Lab classes result in heightened confidence, flexibility, social ease, and ability to work on a team. These benefits power success on the larger stage of life, not only in the theatre.
Learn more about The Theatre Lab School of the Dramatic Arts
Teens Run DC (TRDC)
TRDC was founded in 2009 with two fundamental beliefs, which continue to shape the vision and direction of the organization: (1) positive change and growth occur within the context of long-term, caring relationships and a welcoming community; and (2) bolstering the physical, social, and emotional well-being of at-risk youth leads to lasting achievement in academics and beyond.
Over the last eleven years, TRDC has grown from a pilot project at one high school serving 19 students to a nationally recognized organization with innovative and research-driven programming, serving around 500 middle and high school students throughout the District of Columbia.
The STAND Foundation
The STAND Foundation is a non-profit organization that supports marginalized youth in the DMV area. Our programs are strategically designed to provide the mental, emotional, social, physical, and developmental needs of the children we serve.
FY22 - Cycle 1 Winners
Boys and Girls Clubs of Greater Washington
Help boys and girls of all backgrounds, especially those who need us most, build confidence, develop character, and acquire the skills needed to become productive, civic-minded, responsible adults.
Building Bridges Across the River
Building Bridges Across the River (Building Bridges) provides residents East of the Anacostia River access to the best-in-class facilities, programs, and partnerships in arts and culture, economic opportunity, education, recreation, health, and well-being.
Capitol Hill Arts Workshops
CHAW’s mission of “building community through the arts” is rooted in the belief that art and community-building are synergistic. A diverse constituency creates more dynamic art experiences, and more dynamic art experiences engender greater empathy by giving rise to myriad voices in a highly collaborative and creative environment. Our goals are to uplift local arts and artists, promote artistic literacy, and share creative resources. Collectively, this sets the stage for our vision: “to connect and transform.” This mechanism for propelling social change is at the heart of all we do: better art makes better justice. We offer instruction in the visual and performing arts for students of all ages and abilities; artist residencies; and outreach. We also produce public art. Classes are taught by professional artists and educators. Our youth programs include after-school courses, camps, outreach workshops, and internships. In our history, we have never turned a person or organization away for an inability to pay.
Our constituency spans a wide income range but is primarily concentrated in Ward 6. In a typical year we serve approximately 5000 people both directly through our in-house programs and outreach, and indirectly through the many non-profits that call CHAW their home, as well as through partnerships with a wide variety of community organizations and schools.
Collaborative Solutions for Communities
Originally founded in 1996 as the Columbia Heights/Shaw Family Support Collaborative, Collaborative Solutions for Communities (CSC) is a DC-based organization committed to helping families and neighborhoods realize a brighter future through engagement and support. At CSC, our vision is simple - to empower urban neighborhoods to become environments where families and youth flourish.
Over the early history of CSC, our work primarily focused on providing services to neighborhoods of Wards 1 & 2 in Washington, D.C. In recent years we have expanded to provide critical services to residents, families and neighborhoods throughout DC and beyond. We believe that the solution-focused approach we use has the power to impact the lives of people of all locales and ethnicities.
DC Youth Orchestra
DCYOP offers group lessons and ensemble training on all orchestral instruments for students ages 4 ½ to 18. More than 600 students participate in group classes, ensemble rehearsals, and performances each semester through DCYOP’s main-site programming at Takoma Education Campus as well as DCYOP’s school partnerships. All concerts are free and open to the public.
GALA Inc.
GALA (Grupo de Artistas LatinoAmericanos) Hispanic Theatre is a National Center for Latino Performing Arts in the nation’s capital. Since 1976, GALA has been promoting and sharing the Latino arts and cultures with a diverse audience, creating work that speaks to communities today, and preserving the rich Hispanic heritage for generations that follow. By developing and producing works that explore the breadth of Latino performing arts, GALA provides opportunities for Latino artist, educates youth, and engages the entire community in an exchange of ideas and perspectives.
Hung Tao Choy Mei
Hung Tao Choy Mei Leadership Institute is a 501(c)(3) leadership development organization focusing on developing life-long skills for adults and children of Washington, DC. Since its establishment in 1995, and incorporation as a nonprofit in 2003, HTCMLI has put the community back into martial arts.
Life Pieces to Masterpieces
Life Pieces To Masterpieces uses artistic expression to develop character and leadership, unlock potential, and prepare Black boys and young men to transform their lives and communities.
Our vision is that our boys and young men will be catalysts for positive change in the world.
Midtown Youth Academy
Midtown Youth Academy is a boxing gym for youth that aims to promote success in education and wellness through boxing. For over 45 years, the organization has served as a safe haven for thousands of inner-city youth and neighbors. It was the dream of Mr. Hughes and still is the organization’s goal, for Midtown Youth Academy to live long and continue to stand strong as “A Balance in the Community”.
Moveius Contemporary Ballet
MOVEIUS Contemporary Ballet’s mission is to catalyze new choreography in the National Capital area, and to increase opportunities for dancers, audiences, and students to experience dance and the performing arts. They manage both an innovative dance performance company and a trailblazing facility with its own artistic and community programming.
Shaw Community Center
Founded in 1991, Shaw Community Center’s mission is to enhance the lives and expand the opportunities of Shaw residents in NW DC. As a 30-year community anchor and the sole, remaining community-based afterschool program in Shaw, our Black, Indigenous People of Color (BIPOC) families have relied upon the “Center” as a place for refuge, talk, and emotional support. As a direct result of listening to the community, they developed program services in accordance with what they say they need – not what they want to provide. In return, families have developed a “currency of trust” that cannot be bought or faked.
Years ago, SCC realized that arts and humanities program would be key to its success - that by creating a cultural knowledge store grounded in Black heritage and instilling pride in their cultural identity they could promote connection and investment within the Shaw community. Today, as a recognized arts organization, SCC integrates the arts and humanities into its programs starting with the youngest, who receive weekly art instruction and participate in a number of cultural activities throughout the year and culminating in a workforce development program in which older youth, among other things, learn Afrocentric design, create a culturally - informed fashion line, and act as brand representatives, models, and social media influencers.
SOUL Program
SOUL (Student-Athletes Organized to Understand Leadership) connects high school-aged youth who are involved in sports to diverse opportunities that build the life skills needed to succeed in academics and careers. They do this by engaging students in our six core programs including College Access Study Hall, Sister Circle, Young Men’s Roundtable, Sustainability Education, and College 101. Through these programs, they assist students with their academic, interpersonal, and professional development. They place great emphasis on providing our student-athletes with the resources required to be critical thinkers, effective communicators, problem-solvers, self-advocates, and practitioners of positive sportsmanship. They encourage student-athletes to take the lessons they have learned in life and through SOUL programs to reimagine the future.
Teatro de la Luna
Teatro de la Luna was founded in 1991 whose purpose is to provide the Washington capital area –both to its Spanish-speaking community and to its English-speaking community as well – with a source of high-quality theater as seen from a Latin American perspective. Its mission is to promote Hispanic culture and foster cross-cultural understanding between the Spanish- and English-speaking communities of the region via Spanish-language theater and bilingual performing arts. They forward our mission by producing plays, teaching theater workshops to adults and children, organizing poetry marathons, and by producing International Festivals of Hispanic Theater. All these activities provide opportunities for community dialogue, participation, reflection, and support.
Their vision is for a living, working theater with salaried actors, that trains Hispanic and non-Hispanic actors and theater technicians, provides bilingual theater-related workshops and camps for children and teens, promotes the beauty of the Spanish language, and introduces new and unique forms of Hispanic theater to the greater Washington area.
The Fishing School
Their mission is to prepare elementary and middle school youth for success in high school and life by improving their academic performance and life skills; and engaging them and their parents in intensive, multi-year, and research-based out-of-school and parental engagement programs and activities.
Washington Performing Arts
Washington Performing Arts champions the arts as a unifying force. Through collaborations with artists, educators, community leaders, and institutional partners, they bring wide-ranging artistic programs to stages, schools, and neighborhoods throughout our nation’s capital and, with our virtual platform, share our work throughout the world.
One of the most established and honored performing arts institutions in America, Washington Performing Arts has engaged for more than half a century with artists, audiences, students, and civic life. The city is truly their stage: for decades, in venues ranging from concert halls and clubs to public parks, they have presented a tremendous range of artists and art forms, from the most distinguished symphony orchestras to both renowned and emerging artists in classical music, gospel music, jazz, culturally-specific genres, dance, and more. They also have an ever-expanding artistic and educational presence on the internet, envisioning ongoing opportunities for online connection and community.
Young Playrights' Theater
Young Playwrights’ Theater (YPT) is a community-responsive organization that inspires young people to realize the power of their own voices.
Since 1995, YPT has served young people across the Washington, DC region with high-quality arts education programs, production of plays and performances written by young people, professional development for educators, and antiracism initiatives with arts organizations
FY21 - Cycle 2 Winners
D.C. Creative Writing Workshop
The D.C. Creative Writing Workshop, based in the Congress Heights neighborhood of Southeast D.C., unites parents, teachers and students to create a literary renaissance in this often ignored part of the city.
Since 1995, when Charles Hart Junior High became the first school in Washington to have an extra-curricular creative writing program, the Workshop’s writers-in-residence have introduced thousands of students to the joys of self-expression and the written word, opening for them a world of opportunity that exists outside of the historically neglected area in which they live.
While continuing to serve Hart, now a middle school, the Workshop expanded its programs in 2004 to neighboring Ballou High School and Simon Elementary. Students from these schools and nearby charter schools have attended readings, plays and other literary events, won hundreds of writing awards, and enjoyed a wealth of new experiences not otherwise available to young people in Ward 8.
DC SCORES
DC SCORES creates neighborhood teams that give kids the confidence and skills to succeed on the playing field, in the classroom, and in life.
DC Strings Workshop
DC Strings Workshop is a dynamic and versatile chamber orchestra composed of musicians committed to presenting high-level concerts to diverse audiences.
D.O.L.L.S & DREAMS INC.
Daughters Overcoming Life's Lessons (D.O.L.L.S) & DREAMS INC is a 501(c)(3) that delivers quality life skills and educational support to girls and young women whose life's experiences has prevented them from reaching their full potential by achieving set goals for themselves.
Learn more about D.O.L.L.S. & DREAMS INC.
Dreaming Out Loud
DOL is rebuilding urban, community-based food systems through cooperative social enterprise: increasing access to healthy food, improving community health, supporting entrepreneurs and cooperatives from low-income communities; and creating opportunities for at-risk residents to earn sustainable, family-supporting wages and build wealth. We believe that all communities deserve equal access to fresh, healthy food choices, but that achieving this requires moving beyond the “access” paradigm to a focus on community self-determination and food sovereignty. We are working to create an integrated pipeline to jobs, economic opportunity, and community wealth-building for our most marginalized communities, utilizing the food system as the catalyst.
East of the River Steelband
East Of The River Boys & Girls Steel band is a music training, performing and touring program for youth 12 to 18 living east of DC's Anacostia River.
Horton's Kids
Horton’s Kids empowers children growing up in DC’s most under-resourced communities so that they graduate from high school ready for success in college, career, and life. We serve 500 children in grades K-12 living in Wellington Park & Stanton Oaks – neighborhoods that have been profoundly impacted by decades of disinvestment and barriers to opportunity.
National Capital Fencers Club
The National Capital Fencers Club is one of two Fencing Clubs located in Washington, D.C. and the only non-profit fencing club. This small, independent fencing club serves the Washington metropolitan area (DC / MD / VA), and specializes in saber fencing.
Nomis Youth Network
Sports based intervention services to inner city youth as an alternative to crime and gang activity.
Peace thru Culture
Peace thru Culture provides cultural enrichment programs for children and youth in under-resourced communities.
Restaurant Association Metropolitan Washington (RAMW) Education Foundation
Educated Eats is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization dedicated to promoting the restaurant & foodservice industry as a career of unlimited opportunity!
Teens Run DC
Teens Run DC Empowers Youth to envision and work toward the achievement of personal goals through a distance running, mentoring, and social emotional learning program.
Dance Institute of Washington
Dance Institute of Washington (DIW) is the leading minority-led, pre-professional dance equity organization in Washington, DC. DIW supports students from underserved communities, balancing artistic excellence at the highest level while building life-long skills and confidence through compassion, empowerment, academic discipline, emotional support and nutritional guidance. Through our innovative DIW Barnes Method, the industry’s proven model, our efforts impact and inspire racial and economic equity in dance locally, nationally and across the globe.
The Theatre Lab
The Theatre Lab is DC’s largest and most comprehensive independent institution for dramatic arts training. We offer classes for all ages and levels of experience in a wide range of styles, including drama, comedy, musical theatre and film.
The TraRon Center
Helping those affected by gun violence heal through the arts.
Visionaries of Creative Arts, Inc.
Visionaries of the Creative Arts (VOCA) is a nonprofit organization based in Washington, DC presenting the talents of deaf, hard of hearing, and hearing artists through various forms of creative arts.
FY21 - Cycle 1 Winners
Building Bridges Across the River (BBAR)
Established in 1997 to build and manage the Town Hall Education Arts Recreation Campus, familiarly known as THEARC, BBAR’s importance to the revitalization of southeast DC cannot be overstated. Today, the campus houses over a dozen nonprofits in the arts, education, health, recreation, and workforce development fields, and BBAR manages two theaters, a farm, a technical theater program, and more. It is the engine behind it all, providing nonprofit partners with space, marketing, and management free of charge, and leading projects like the Skyland Workforce Center and the 11th Street Bridge Park, a new outdoor venue designed to generate economic opportunity for the surrounding communities. It’s all about making collaboration a force multiplier – addressing multiple disparities, creating better outcomes for the people THEARC serves, and equipping the residents of Wards 7 and 8 not only to survive, but to thrive.
DC Youth Orchestra Program
The mission of the DC Youth Orchestra Program (DCYOP) is “music for young people; achievement for life.” Our goals are to 1.) Provide quality music instruction and performance opportunities for young people across the DC metropolitan area’s full diversity, 2.) Develop a Youth Orchestra capable of competing successfully at the national and international levels, and 3.) Instill in our students the discipline and focus necessary to succeed academically as well as musically.
FH Faunteroy Community Enrichment Center
The Center’s primary focus is on Youth Development with a strong emphasis on Health and Wellness on a multi-generational level–they are truly “Rebuilding the Village”. The programs and activities are free of charge and available to the residents of the Deanwood community.
The Fishing School
The mission of The Fishing School is to prepare elementary and middle school students for success in high school and life by improving their academic performance and life skills; and engaging them and their parents in intensive, multi-year, and research-based out of school time and parent engagement programs and activities.
The Nicholson Project
A former single-family row house has been restored as a safe, equitable residency for artists and the community: The Nicholson Project is an artist residency program coupled with a neighborhood garden that works to support artists and serves as a creative and innovative cultural hub. We aim to become a community anchor that celebrates the community’s authentic identity while infusing new vibrancy into Southeast DC. Ultimately, we will harness the power of creative placemaking to strengthen the existing social fabric. Our vision is to inspire others to use non-traditional arts-based, community-centered, entrepreneurial projects as a pathway toward stronger, more vibrant communities.
Open Goal Project
The Mission of the Open Goal Project is to create opportunities for young players from low-income families and underserved communities to access high-level soccer and grow with the game, on and off the field, to provide resources that empower those players and families to navigate the costs and overcome hidden barriers associated with playing, and to use soccer as a vehicle for cultural enrichment, higher educational opportunities, and greater life experiences.
SITAR Arts Center
Our mission is to offer possibilities that transform the lives of children and teens born into a world of unequal access to opportunity.
We engage children and teens in the highest quality visual, performing and digital arts. We teach the arts so that our students learn about themselves and gain critical life skills. We create community for students and their families. And we are an untiring voice on their behalf.
Smart Activities for Fitness & Education (S.A.F.E.)
Smart Activities for Fitness and Education (S.A.F.E.) is a non-profit 501 (c) 3 organization that uses tennis programs to provide opportunities for youth in the District of Columbia to build their character and self-esteem and improve their academic performance. Through comprehensive tennis and educational programs and cultural enrichment activities, S.A.F.E. encourages youth to make better choices and teaches youth to become confident, responsible and valuable members of their community.
Teatro de la Luna
Teatro de la Luna was founded in 1991 to provide the Washington capital area – both to its Spanish-speaking community and to its English-speaking community as well – with a source of high-quality theater as seen from a Latin American perspective. We present our productions at the Rosslyn Spectrum in Arlington, VA, as well as in various other area venues. Our performances are in Spanish, with English surtitles or live English dubbing offered at our mainstage productions and during our International Festivals of Hispanic Theater.
Our mission is to promote Hispanic culture and foster cross-cultural understanding between the Spanish- and English-speaking communities of our region via Spanish-language theater and bilingual performing arts. We forward our mission by producing plays, by teaching theater workshops to adults and children, by organizing poetry marathons and by producing International Festivals of Hispanic Theater. All these activities provide opportunities for community dialogue, participation, reflection and support.
Washington Performing Arts
One of the most established and honored performing arts institutions in America, Washington Performing Arts has engaged for more than half a century with artists, audiences, students, and civic life. The city is truly our stage: for decades, in venues ranging from concert halls and clubs to public parks, we have presented a tremendous range of artists and art forms, from the most distinguished symphony orchestras to both renowned and emerging artists in classical music, jazz, international genres, and more. We also have an ever-expanding artistic and educational presence on the internet, addressing the programming challenges of this time of pandemic while envisioning ongoing opportunities for online connection and community in a post-COVID world.
Washington Tennis & Education Foundation
WTEF’s mission is to build life champions. We give children and youth a safe environment they trust, where they can excel. We empower them to achieve their highest potential by developing meaningful values and critical skills that lead them to life-long success. We do this through a pathway of continual academic, life skills and tennis instruction during after-school and summer camp hours.
YMCA of Metropolitan Washington
Our mission is to foster the spiritual, mental and physical development of individuals, families and communities according to the ideals of inclusiveness, equality and mutual respect for all.
We know that lasting personal and social change comes about when we all work together. That’s why, at the Y, strengthening community is our cause. Every day, we work side-by-side with our neighbors to make sure that everyone, regardless of age, income or background, has the opportunity to learn, grow and thrive.
Young Playwrights Theater
Young Playwrights’ Theater believes that creative expression and theater are valuable tools for the education, enrichment and self-actualization of young people. Through our programs and productions, we fulfill their creative vision by hiring professional artists to guide and perform original youth-generated work for their peers and for the public.
YPT believes that it is important that youth, especially those whose voices are often minimized, have access to high-quality arts education that centers their experience and is culturally competent and affirming for all young people involved. In order to do this work, YPT acknowledges oppression and reduces its harm through our internal and external structures and practices.
YPT believes that young people are inherently brilliant and we exist to share that brilliance with the world.
FY20 Cycle 2 Winners
Anacostia AMP Youth Sports
Our mission is to bring H.O.P.E. (Healing, Opportunities, Provision/Peace & Empowerment) back to under-served communities “East of the River" by providing educational support, cultural arts, mentoring, and community events to children and families.
ARCH Development Organization
ARCH is a small, nonprofit neighborhood-based organization with its entire focus on the economic regeneration of Washington DC’s Historic Community of Anacostia, using arts, culture, and the creative economy.
Beacon House
The mission of Beacon House is to provide children in the Edgewood neighborhood of Northeast Washington, DC with a safe, nurturing, and life-expanding community in which to increase their academic achievement, discover their talents, and to grow into healthy adults who achieve their greatest potential. Our programs focus on closing the education achievement gap - and thus improving the economic trajectories - of children in Ward 5 for whom generational poverty is most persistent.
Capitol Hill Arts Workshop & Serve Your City (Joint Application)
The Capitol Hill Arts Workshop's (CHAW's) mission is to build community through the arts. It is a community-based, not-for-profit organization founded in 1972 by Sally Crowell and other community members who were interested in sharing their artistic expertise with children and adults.
Serve Your City is a nonprofit that provides life-changing experiences and opportunities for at-risk D.C. students through inspiring programming and the support of passionate volunteers.
Critical Exposure
Critical Exposure teaches youth how to use the power of photography and their own voices to become effective advocates for school reform and social change. We partner with schools, youth programs, and community groups to connect art and advocacy.
Dance Place
Founded in 1980, Dance Place builds a community of artists, audiences and students through high quality performances, commissions, training and educational programs. We are committed to enriching the field of dance locally, nationally and internationally. Our thriving arts campus serves as an anchor in the development of our Brookland / Edgewood neighborhood in Washington, DC.
East of the River Boys & Girls Steelband
Since 1993, scores of District of Columbia youth have participated in the East of the River Boys & Girls Steelband. A program that enhances their lives, build self confidence and resiliency as it fosters an appreciation for the arts. The Steel Band program works with youth, 11 to 18 years living east of DC's Anacostia River.
GALA Hispanic Theatre
GALA (Grupo de Artistas Latinoamericanos) Hispanic Theatre preserves and promotes Latino arts and culture and shares this rich Hispanic heritage through its productions and other diverse performing arts programs. By developing, producing, and performing works that explore the breadth of Latino performing arts, GALA provides opportunities for the Latino artists, trains youth, and engages the entire community in a dynamic exchange of ideas and perspectives.
Nomis Youth Network
Sports based intervention services to inner city youth as an alternative to crime and gang activity.
Organization for Training Others in Need (OFTON)
Founded in 1992, OFT/ON provides programs and activities that encourage diverse artistic expression so that District citizens can experience the rich history and culture of America.
Step Afrika! USA Incorporated
ArtsStep Afrika! is the first professional company in the world dedicated to the tradition of stepping.
We promote an appreciation for stepping and its use as an educational, motivational and healthy tool for young people. We accomplish this mission through arts education activities, international cultural exchange programs and performances world-wide.
We believe that the values of teamwork, discipline and commitment are essential to success in stepping and throughout life. We structure our performances and educational programs to connect intimately with our audience and create a positive influence on students’ lives.
Studio Theatre
Studio Theatre produces exceptional contemporary theatre in deliberately intimate spaces, fostering a more thoughtful, more empathetic, and more connected community, in Washington, DC and beyond.
Teens Run DC
Teens Run DC promotes the physical, social, and emotional well-being of under-served youth through a mentoring and distance running program.
The First Tee of Greater Washington
The First Tee of Greater Washington, DC is a non-profit youth development organization providing life enhancing values and character building through the game of golf.
The Theatre Lab School of the Dramatic Arts
Our mission is to transform lives through theatre. We work to make the real-life benefits of theatre training accessible to all regardless of age, income, or experience level.
YAAY Me, lnc.
Yaay Me will transform communities through transforming: youth, their families and those who serve them. We will achieve this through our principles of leadership (self & community), self-education, character education and career exploration.
FY20 - Cycle 1 Winners
Atlas Performing Art Center
The Atlas Performing Arts Center is a non-profit performing arts venue in a historic theater. We’re the cultural anchor of the H Street, Northeast community in Washington, DC. The Atlas fosters and presents stellar art in film, dance, music, theater, vocal and choral work, spoken word, and beyond.
Our mission is to bring people together through the arts to expand the reach and strengthen the bonds of our community. We provide shared space in a creative environment that inspires exceptional performances, events, and initiatives that enlighten, entertain, and reflect the best of the arts and our humanity.
As the catalyst for neighborhood growth and change, the Atlas continues to play a major role in the regional creative economy and is where the arts, culture, and connection happen on H Street.
Building Bridges Across the River
Established in 1997 to build and manage the Town Hall Education Arts Recreation Campus, familiarly known as THEARC, BBAR’s importance to the revitalization of southeast DC cannot be overstated. Today, the campus houses over a dozen nonprofits in the arts, education, health, recreation, and workforce development fields, and BBAR manages two theaters, a farm, a technical theater program, and more. It is the engine behind it all, providing nonprofit partners with space, marketing, and management free of charge, and leading projects like the Skyland Workforce Center and the 11th Street Bridge Park, a new outdoor venue designed to generate economic opportunity for the surrounding communities. It’s all about making collaboration a force multiplier – addressing multiple disparities, creating better outcomes for the people THEARC serves, and equipping the residents of Wards 7 and 8 not only to survive, but to thrive.
Canady Foundation for the Arts
The Canady Foundation for the Arts (CFA) is a volunteer based Washington, DC cultural arts 501(c) 3 STEAM focused non-profit organization that educates, empowers and implements innovative arts and media programs for youth of color. CFA aims to enhance social-emotional development as well as work-life balance skills to affect students and their community positively into adulthood.
DC SAFE
DC SAFE is the only 24/7 crisis intervention agency for domestic violence in Washington, DC. Our mission is to ensure the safety and self-determination of domestic violence survivors through emergency services, court advocacy, and system reform.
DC Youth Orchestra Program
The mission of the DC Youth Orchestra Program (DCYOP) is “music for young people; achievement for life.” Our goals are to 1.) Provide quality music instruction and performance opportunities for young people across the DC metropolitan area’s full diversity, 2.) Develop a Youth Orchestra capable of competing successfully at the national and international levels, and 3.) Instill in our students the discipline and focus necessary to succeed academically as well as musically.
Girls on the Run, LLC
At Girls on the Run we inspire ALL girls to build confidence and make intentional decisions, while fostering care and compassion for self and others. Trained coaches use physical activity and dynamic discussions to build social, emotional and physical skills in every girl while encouraging healthy habits for life.
National Capital Fencers Club
Our principle mission is to introduce the sport of fencing to a community not overly familiar with the sport and its personal and professional benefits. Our main focus is to concentrate on academic excellence while promoting athleticism, inclusion, opportunities to excel and become contributing citizens. This will be accomplished through mentoring, training and competition all while stressing sportsmanship. Our leading principles are integrity, academic and athletic excellence, instilling confidence, building relationships, and developing character.
Spirit of Sport
Teatro de la Luna
Teatro de la Luna was founded in 1991 to provide the Washington capital area – both to its Spanish-speaking community and to its English-speaking community as well – with a source of high-quality theater as seen from a Latin American perspective. We present our productions at the Rosslyn Spectrum in Arlington, VA, as well as in various other area venues. Our performances are in Spanish, with English surtitles or live English dubbing offered at our mainstage productions and during our International Festivals of Hispanic Theater.
Our mission is to promote Hispanic culture and foster cross-cultural understanding between the Spanish- and English-speaking communities of our region via Spanish-language theater and bilingual performing arts. We forward our mission by producing plays, by teaching theater workshops to adults and children, by organizing poetry marathons and by producing International Festivals of Hispanic Theater. All these activities provide opportunities for community dialogue, participation, reflection and support.
Young Playwrights
Young Playwrights’ Theater believes that creative expression and theater are valuable tools for the education, enrichment and self-actualization of young people. Through our programs and productions, we fulfill their creative vision by hiring professional artists to guide and perform original youth-generated work for their peers and for the public.
YPT believes that it is important that youth, especially those whose voices are often minimized, have access to high-quality arts education that centers their experience and is culturally competent and affirming for all young people involved. In order to do this work, YPT acknowledges oppression and reduces its harm through our internal and external structures and practices.
YPT believes that young people are inherently brilliant and we exist to share that brilliance with the world.